Our Love Story : Part 4

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

So I'm driving through Indiana one day on the way back from our family vacation. I woke up from a long nap and realized where we were. If I knew we were driving through Indy I would have tried to meet up with my best friend Leah, but for some reason I didn't realize it was on our route. I called Leah to let her know I was driving through her state and wished I could see her. A very excited Leah said, Tim's coming home from Africa today! You have to come to the airport!! I yelled up to the front of the van asking dad if we could turn around and go to the airport. Of course he thought I was crazy and had no idea why on earth I would want to go the airport right now. He said, we had to keep going. I told Leah it wasn't going to work out, and then hung up. I sat in the crowded van trying not to let the others see me cry. How could I get this close to meeting him and God wouldn't let it work out?! Oh well, I guess this was a sign. A sign I wasn't supposed to meet him, and I guess he wasn't 'the one'. After six months of waiting for him to get back, I was disappointed.

Tim came back to a group of people very happy to see him. He had been away for half a year, and was glad to be back. The next Sunday at church he pulled Leah aside and asked her if she could show him a picture of the girl he had been praying about for six months. Leah was still not sure that what she had done would be looked on favorably by his parents so she was trying not to be too conspicuous as she looked through all her facebook pictures. She finally found one of me and showed Tim. He approved.

Back at home I told God that if Tim Porter wasn't the one for me I was content to not get married for a few years. This was pretty big for me, up to this point getting married was all I really wanted and worried about. I was finally content with where I was in life. I told God I gave up the Tim Porter idea and unless He made it happen I wasn't going to pursue it.

Leah and her brother decided to have a big fourth of July party at their house the next month. Leah invited me and also conveniently invited Tim and his family. I knew he would most likely be there and told God that if nothing happened this time it was ok, and I was totally fine with waiting on the Lord. I got my mom, and two sisters to come with me as moral support. I kinda filled them in on what was going on so they could help evaluate for me. Tim also told his family that there was a girl he was thinking about getting to know. Most of the family didn't remember me from our meetings in years past, but one sister remembered me very well. She told Tim that she couldn't stand me, and that I was defiantly not the right one. I was a ditzy city girl. Tim knew that any girl he started to get to know wouldn't meet with approval from this sister in particular, she was very protective and had a strong personality. He hoped she wasn't right though.

The night before I left I wrote in my journal. “I am going to meet my future husband tomorrow”. 

I drove three very nervous hours down to Leah's party. When I got there Leah needed me to run an errand with her. I didn't really want to go. I wanted to be there before Tim got there. You know how it's less awkward when you're already sitting at a party vs. being the one the shows up late and everyone looks at you? Yeah, well now I was going to be the late one. The errand took about two hours to complete and I knew Tim would be there when I got back. I was so so nervous as we drove up to the house. Leah told me “it's just Tim, why would you be nervous?” That didn't help.

The worst part was I didn't know what he knew, I knew, he knew, I knew. You know? Like Leah had told me tons of stuff about him, but had Leah told him that she told me about him? Did his family know anything? My mind was just spinning. We finally got to the party and there he was.